[Guildbook] Solicitors

[Guildbook] Solicitors By J. Edward Tremlett "If you greatly desire something, have the guts to stake everything on obtaining it." - Brendan Francis

Ghost Story: The Turning Turning of the Wheel Introduction "What's Your Pleasure, Sir?" "Why are we here...? Hmmm. It's been a while since anyone's asked me that. "I'll tell you why we're here. You see that guy, there at the bar, back in the real world? The one with the ACT-UP pin? I've been watching him for a long time. He's well in his cups, by now, trying not to let anyone see him cry when they play 'Fernando.' And And he's thinking of someone he loved and lost a long, long time ago... all over one, silly day that he'd give anything to take back.

"Somewhere else, there's a wage slave I know. And And I know that he's working late in the office, tonight, all by himself. He thinks his promotion's only a matter of time. Just one more project. Just one more day of sliding his nose up his boss' ass. Just one more thing. It's so close he can taste it. He wants it as bad as Christmas. "Somewhere else there's probably at least o ne kid outside a toy store's window, staring at a brand new bike and not noticing that his mom's told him "no" a hundred times. There's probably at least one woman at the beach, looking at Adonis and knowing he'd be perfect at everything - perfect for  her. "And let's not forget that guy looking at his best friend's girl, up there at the altar, and thinking 'Damn, she used to be mine.' Imagining what her neck smelled like when he kissed her. Remembering how she looked at him. And thinking thinking he'd give anything - anything at all - just to b e the guy up there saying "I do." "Desire is everywhere. Men and boys staring at wank magazines o r new cars. People imagining themselves in the experiences they're sold on TV. TV. The toy your mom threw out when you were six. The past, the present, the future: without Desire to help you fondly remember, or goad you on, or give you something to focus your energies on, life is meaningless, isn't it? "And that's the key word here, 'life.' Those people, back in the meat world? At least they can still try to get what they want. No matter what the odds, there's a chance, at least. "That's not so easy here, now is it? "So you can imagine how much more painful Desire's sting is for the dead. But then, I don't think you have to imagine it. You can feel it for yourself... can't you? "'Why are we here,' you asked? Let me turn the question around, friend: why are YOU here? "And how can I help you?" Blackmailers, blackguards, backstabbers and snakes - that's the Solicitors, to hear the tales the others tell. They are not trusted. They are not loved. Most Guildwraiths would rather pretend they  just don't exist at all. They moved in the shadows long before the o ther Guilds were outlawed. They were considered bad well before the Mnemoi fell. In all the dark corners in all the Necropoli of Stygia, they have been lurking... waiting for some poor soul to tread into their web. Waiting for you... But yet they have their uses. When something needs doing, and no one else can seem to achieve it - or convince someone it needs doing - they a re there, ready to make it happen. When someone really needs them, he'll find them waiting patiently... patiently... almost as if they knew he was coming...? That's the trouble with them: no one really knows whether the idea to use them was their own idea, or an idea a Solicitor gave them. To To use them is to be used, and to be used by them is to be lost - this is as well-known as anything else in Stygia. Yet Yet the Solicitors have never wanted for  customers, then or now, and that is a very frightening thought. But there are more frightening things to speak of, here. As bad as their reputation is, the truth about the Solicitors is worse. Much worse.

"Somewhere else, there's a wage slave I know. And And I know that he's working late in the office, tonight, all by himself. He thinks his promotion's only a matter of time. Just one more project. Just one more day of sliding his nose up his boss' ass. Just one more thing. It's so close he can taste it. He wants it as bad as Christmas. "Somewhere else there's probably at least o ne kid outside a toy store's window, staring at a brand new bike and not noticing that his mom's told him "no" a hundred times. There's probably at least one woman at the beach, looking at Adonis and knowing he'd be perfect at everything - perfect for  her. "And let's not forget that guy looking at his best friend's girl, up there at the altar, and thinking 'Damn, she used to be mine.' Imagining what her neck smelled like when he kissed her. Remembering how she looked at him. And thinking thinking he'd give anything - anything at all - just to b e the guy up there saying "I do." "Desire is everywhere. Men and boys staring at wank magazines o r new cars. People imagining themselves in the experiences they're sold on TV. TV. The toy your mom threw out when you were six. The past, the present, the future: without Desire to help you fondly remember, or goad you on, or give you something to focus your energies on, life is meaningless, isn't it? "And that's the key word here, 'life.' Those people, back in the meat world? At least they can still try to get what they want. No matter what the odds, there's a chance, at least. "That's not so easy here, now is it? "So you can imagine how much more painful Desire's sting is for the dead. But then, I don't think you have to imagine it. You can feel it for yourself... can't you? "'Why are we here,' you asked? Let me turn the question around, friend: why are YOU here? "And how can I help you?" Blackmailers, blackguards, backstabbers and snakes - that's the Solicitors, to hear the tales the others tell. They are not trusted. They are not loved. Most Guildwraiths would rather pretend they  just don't exist at all. They moved in the shadows long before the o ther Guilds were outlawed. They were considered bad well before the Mnemoi fell. In all the dark corners in all the Necropoli of Stygia, they have been lurking... waiting for some poor soul to tread into their web. Waiting for you... But yet they have their uses. When something needs doing, and no one else can seem to achieve it - or convince someone it needs doing - they a re there, ready to make it happen. When someone really needs them, he'll find them waiting patiently... patiently... almost as if they knew he was coming...? That's the trouble with them: no one really knows whether the idea to use them was their own idea, or an idea a Solicitor gave them. To To use them is to be used, and to be used by them is to be lost - this is as well-known as anything else in Stygia. Yet Yet the Solicitors have never wanted for  customers, then or now, and that is a very frightening thought. But there are more frightening things to speak of, here. As bad as their reputation is, the truth about the Solicitors is worse. Much worse.

For they are not a small group of wraiths hiding in the corners of Stygia's ruins. They are a worldwide brotherhood, working working towards a goal that can only be as dark as the methods used to achieve it. They are in contact with something they claim to be more powerful than anything imaginable. And And they are in possession of a certain understanding that has made them the kings of this dead world, but has also seen the best and brightest amongst them fall to a fate worse than Spectrehood. They say that ignorance is bliss, but it's much too late for that now. The Book is open, and now you will read it... What's Here That Must Be Read Part I: A History History of Desire and Hir Children covers the illustrious history of the Cabal, seen both from within and without. Its shadowy origins are alluded to, its more tangible past is laid bare, and its recent movements are discussed. And it's all true, even if it never happened... Part II: The Kings of The World World explains - or lies about - how the Cabal works, and why it does what it does. Its organization is highlighted, as well as what it thinks of - and does to - other  organizations in Stygia, and all over the Shadowlands (perhaps). Part III: Spinning Wheels and Grinding Gears covers the mechanics of the Cabal in some detail. New Intimation Arts, Arts, Merits and Flaws, Artifacts and Backgrounds await your gaze, as does an explanation for why there are so few old, bold Solicitors. But don't let deter you... Part IV: The Hands of Desire presents sample characters, Solicitors of note, and some places of  interest to both. What You Must Keep In Mind Believe it or not, the Solicitors are the good guys. At least, that's what they'd like you to think, provided they wanted your wraith to know anything about them at all. But then, that's what the Solicitors truly believe. That's what they tell their Apprentices Apprentices and hammer into their Novices. That's what the Masters tell themselves when they do things that would make you want to crawl under a rock and die just to watch. Their hands might be getting dirty in the here and now, but their eyes are on the horizon, staring off at some grand future that only they can see. And that future they see - however darkly - is one that will make what happens today seem very well worth it all. That is one thing that should be understood about these wraiths: they are as fanatic as any Heretic could ever be. They are willing to sacrifice everything - even their own sanity - to bring their grand designs about. That's because Solicitors know they're right. They have always known that they were right. They know what the truth is, because it's cut them as sharply and deeply as any knife. But, as with any truth, there are numerous interpretations. Portions of Guildbook: Solicitors are presented in a number of voices. Some of them may seem insane, sadistic or a little suspicious. They might also contradict one another at times. The truth lies within them, somewhere, but you'll have to decide for yourself what the Solicitors truly are.  After all, they they can't all be right... right... can they...? they...?

For Your Own Good... This netbook has been written from the perspective of Wraith Revised material on Ex Libris Nocturnis, which picks up from the events of Ends of Empire. If you're not following that metaplot, or you haven't read what I've written there, some of what's here might not make sense. You should go read it first, if you haven't already. The movies Hellraiser and Hellraiser II are excellent inspiration. Avoid the third and fourth movies.  As diametrically opposed as they might be, Bester and Mr. Morden from Babylon 5 would make wonderful Solicitors: Bester for his self-righteous and self-serving fanaticism, and Morden because... well... watch it again and you'll know what I'm talking about.  Avon from Blake's 7 is also a wonderful, self-serving rogue to emulate. If you want a modern study in desire gone wrong, or the bizarre things it makes people do, you can't do much better than to read books and short stories by Yukio Mishima. This Japanese author surrounded himself with a private army, tried to overthrow the post-war government, and then committed ritual suicide when the revolution failed. Anyone who wants to run a Kindred of  the East game should read him. The Sailor Who Fell From Grace From the Sea is a great place to start. In this day and age, anything written about fanaticism, charismatic leaders and cults, shadowy business deals gone awry and things of that nature would be of u se. Given how much of that is going about lately, you hardly need to read anything outside of the paper or news magazines. But, given that such things are aimed at the lowest common denominator - which you are not - it wouldn't hurt. ~ I. A History of Desire and Hir Children ~  Ancient Mythology "The woman answered the serpent, 'We may eat the fruit of any tree in the garden, except for the tree in the middle of the garden; God has forbidden us either to to eat or to touch the fruit of that; if we do, we shall die.' "The serpent said 'Of course you will not die. God knows that as soon as you eat it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like Gods knowing both good and evil.'"

My dear Apprentice: With this note, which I am quite sure you were not surprised to find in your room, I give you my congratulations. I made it quite clear to your group that they should do well to look both left and right, for only one of you would remain here when the week of testing was finished. That one, this time, is you. To get this far means that you have not only excelled in the what the Cabal would expect from one such as you, but that you have impressed even me. And that, I do not mind telling you, is a feat worth its weight in gold. It is also a bar that I expect you to continue leaping over.

To celebrate this moment, I have a gift to you. Soon, you will be read to from The Book. However, as with most esoteric works, it can provide a number of problems for the beginning student problems that might hobble and restrain an otherwise-extraordinary talent. I find that a bit of  preparation can make the difference between full comprehension and mere hearing of a complicated text. So, in the hopes that they will aid you in your goal to serve the Cabal, I present to you these introductory notes to The Book, as they were presented to me by my instructor, all those ages ago. I would urge you to take the first half of this day to study them, and then meet me in the main hall when you feel you can speak of them at length. Onward and upward, my pupil! The only way out is something your former classmates know full well of, now. To hear we Solicitors tell the tale, our intricate dance of desire and fulfillment was going on well before Stygia even existed. And it is no mere fairy story with which to soothe nervous enfants and scare wayward Apprentices. It is the truth, and that truth is the cornerstone upon which we base our labors. That would make us the first Guild, surely, but we take great pains to distance ourselves from that name. You have been taught as much by now. We allow others especially the Guildwraiths to think of us that way, because it makes for such a wonderful camouflage. But a Guild? No. Our  concepts of doing things were ancient long before the mercantile notions of " Guilds" ever came into being. The Guilds play at hoary antiquity to lend some sense of ritual to an otherwise straightforward working arrangement, but we do not play at such things. We are. Here, in our inner sanctums, where the truth can be told without fear, we insist rightfully that we were the first group of Wraiths anywhere. And though the names used to describe us might have changed, we ourselves have never changed that much. What we are now, we have always been: a Cabal of tireless guardians, watching over a trusted secret that must not fall into the wrong hands. We are the watchers of the world and the wardens of the heart. We are the keepers of the sacred fire that burns in the secret places. We have a thousand eyes and a thousand hands, and perhaps a thousand thousand names, but one true purpose. The knife that cuts the hand that holds the skin that bleeds the blood that stains - we are the Solicitors.  And this is our story. ( pause) Riiiiight... "Everyone believes very easily whatever they fear or desire."  - Jean de La Fontaine What you're about to read is going to sound really out there, to say the least. Old Gods? Ancient  religions? Secret Societies? Mind-blasting secrets known only to the restless dead? That, 3 cents and a tinfoil hat'll get you a cup of coffee at O'Tolley's, right? But here's the catch - the Solicitors believe every word of it. This is their reason for existence. This is how they justify what they do, provided they don't groove off of that sort of thing, already. This is what they tell their Apprentices, and only those who nod along and believe or at least put  up a good act get to become Novices.

These are the beliefs of the Solicitors, and they hold them very close to their hearts. It might not  be anywhere near what really happened, but as far as the Cabal is concerned, it's nothing less than the absolute truth.  And one thing you never, ever, ever do is tell a zealot he's wrong: especially a zealot with Intimation... In The Beginning In The Beginning The first stirrings of our Cabal came long before the Sundering, back in the days when the Old Gods walked amongst us. The world was simple, then. It was a simple thing filled with simple ideas. The Old Gods were the first gods, and they, like the world that gave b irth to them, were simple beings. They arose from immediate human needs and fears: primitive concepts given form and voice, crackling with the untold power of a new world. Food and Fire, Sex and The Darkness, Hate and Pain and countless others. For untold aeons of prehistory it was they who oversaw this world. One of these Old Gods was Desire. Desire was one of the first of their number, perhaps the child of Life. And S:he, in turn, gave birth to the twins of Agony and Ecstasy, who attend Hir still. Now, Desire was the most powerful of all the Old Gods. Every other concept that arose from need could feed into Hir domain, and the satisfaction of desire was rarely denied in those days. The inadvertent worship that merely living gave Hir provided Hir with enough power to move Heaven and Earth. In fact, it is said that S:he often did. The Nature of Desire The Solicitors say that Desire is no less than a God, and that Hir very presence created Hir coGods Agony and Ecstasy. These three went about Their business in the worlds of Spirit and Man, charged - like all the Old Gods - with a Great Secret. In Their case it was the secret that the Solicitors call the Dread Secret: the one that Desire is said to have given the Center of the Wheel; the same one every true Solicitor learns. Desire is portrayed as a beautiful, androgynous figure. S:he could be either male or female, and  is depicted in such a way that the onlooker is rarely certain of anything but her o wn desire for Hir.  Agony and Ecstasy are also beautiful androgynes, and seem to be identical twins. However, while Ecstasy is portrayed as being permanently enraptured, like a child who's been granted its fondest wish, Agony wears a permanent scowl, as though Hir each and every longing had been cruelly turned in on itself. One might wonder what place Gods have in the modern world. Some of the Cabal claim that they  have seen Desire Hirself while undergoing the Induction Ritual. Others claim to have caught  elusive and enticing glimpses of Hir while doing Hir will. Agony and Ecstasy tend to manifest  Themselves more subtly, in the form of coincidental pairings, but there are those who say that  They have also been seen.

(As to what they really are, or if they really exist within the framework of the World of Darkness, such calls are up to the Storyteller as befits her own game.) Legendary Complications: But as man changed, so did the landscape. Men became more complex, and so did their Gods. They grew proper names and distinct personalities. Pantheons were constructed and mythologies were scribbled down. Empires conquered one another and absorbed the strangers' gods into their own.  And so the Old Gods were either swept aside and forgotten, or else changed over time to fit the new faces their worshipers imagined them wearing. Some are still with us to this day, though they would scarcely recognize them, and many are no longer of consequence. But Desire remained Desire. Though other Gods and Goddesses might have been chosen over  Hir, or instead of Hir, the power S:he gained from Hir nature more than made up for this abandonment. Indeed, how could S:he be abandoned? Who did not ever feel Desire?  And besides, S:he still retained Hir temples, direct worship and followers in these dark lands of  the Dead. For, unlike the other Old Gods, whose need for propitiation often ended when a man took his last breath, Desire followed well past then and into the next world. And even when mortal men no longer remembered that S:he was more than just a powerful emotion, those who had crossed the barrier between worlds which was much less of a barrier in those days continued to sing Hir  praises, attracting new followers as they did. We were the Initiators, and we were the guardians of the Dread Secret. What is the Dread Secret? Even though every Solicitor who makes it past the Induction Ritual knows - and, worse, understands - it word for word, there is a great deal of debate amongst the Cabal as to what it  really is. Some say it's a spell. Others say that it is a form of 'higher science,' like a mathematical formula whose concepts cannot be easily grasped. And still others say it's Desire Hirself made manifest  in words: a little piece of Hir, fashioned in such a way that S:he can reside inside someone's mind  for all time to come. This is, most likely, the piece that was given away to mortal man, thus sparking the war of the Old Gods. They say that only the Center of the Wheel fully understands its nature, but all attempts to ask  have been deemed counterproductive by those who could do the asking. And that is most often the end of that line of thinking. (On a more OOC note: if a player actually wants to know what the Dread Secret itself - as in, its wording - write the words "Sure! It's (Unintelligible Concept)" on a piece of paper, fold it up, hand  it over to her, and grin like a motherfucker.)  As for the rather logical question of why the Solicitors should need to guard the Dread Secret, if  Desire wanted to give it to mankind in the first place, file that under "moves in mysterious ways"  and don't ask the Gardeners.

Creating the Wheel Of the Center of the Wheel, you need to understand that this is truly the one who leads us. Indeed, the Center of the Wheel is the one who has always led us. Without a center, a wheel goes nowhere, and so it is with us. Long ago, when Desire sought a prophet, the Center of the Wheel was that prophet. When Desire sought to give the Dread Secret to mankind, the Center of the Wheel was the first to receive that gift, thus becoming Hir first prophet. And when Desire thought that there should be a way to place that gift into writing, along with many other things, the Center of the Wheel was Hir scribe. The Center brought others to Hir service, and so was the world maintained. The Center of the Wheel spoke to us of great things that would be. The Center spoke of a time of  peace that would be shattered by a terrible enemy - one who would come with a Great Lie that would threaten the order of Desire. The Center spoke of a time of conflict, when we would have to do many things in order to overcome that Great Lie. And the Center spoke of the peace that would come after we had triumphed over our enemy and his damned lies. These things were spoken of in the days when we were the Initiators. From our great temples and ziggurats, we held court. We were called upon to make things happen. We began things that needed beginning, and saw them through to their end, just as we ended things that needed ending and saw them through to their beginning once more.

Ziggurats? From the sounds of things, the time of the Initiators was back in ancient Mesopotamia. This could  be anywhere from the first stirrings of the culture circa 5000 BCE up to the formation of Sumeria around 3500 BCE. (By comparison, Charon is purportedly from the Mycenaean period, which ran from about 1550 to 1100 BCE). Not much is truly understood a bout Mesopotamia, given what little has survived and what little can be gleaned from that. There are many dark suggestions, though, and if the Solicitors had  their genesis there, then some of those suggestions might have some basis in fact. Those wanting a look at what sort of nasty goings-on were about in the Mesopotamia of the World of Darkness are steered towards Dead Magic, for Mage: the Ascension. Those curious to unravel the mysteries of The Book may find more answers there than they'll know what to do with...

Spreading the Word

There were lands outside of man's cradle that had yet to know of Desire's true words. The Center  of the Wheel walked far over the land where it had all began, but just as the center of a wheel must stay in its center, so did the Center of our wheel have to stay in its center. Those who the Center had gathered together needed the leadership that the Center alone could provide. The Center of the Wheel bade that eight trusted followers should attend Desire. These were given copies of The Book and sent out in straight lines to the eight corners of the world, that they might instruct others as to their worth. Each day they walked as far as they could, spreading the words of Desire to those who would listen. And each night they turned right a round and spoke in the direction of the Center, and the Center gave them their instructions for the following day. They walked for ages, and then, when they had gone so far, the Center of the Wheel bade them stop and build a shelter for The Book. And when they had built that shelter, the Center of the Wheel bade them to gather others to hear from The Book. And when they had gathered those others, the Center of the Wheel bade them to lead those others in Hir name.  And so, to this day, in any place you go in the lands of the dead, you will find one of us there. We have many names and many faces, but one true g oal - to serve Desire. Here, There and Everywhere This part of it - claims to have sent people in straight lines notwithstanding - is quite true. While they might be operating under different names and have agendas that seem contradictory,  perhaps even in competition with one another, most of the Dark Kingdoms have Solicitors in them, and in cases where Stygia overwrote a Dark Kingdom, there were "Solicitors" already  there. More detail on Solicitors outside of Stygia can be found in the "Outside Relations" section.

The Coming of The Great Lie: For ages, there was peace and calm. Things proceeded as Desire bade, and Desire was followed. Things were as they should be. But in the lands of the great sea, upon the Isle of Sorrows, came a threat to our order. An upstart whelp calling himself Charon - a lap-dog for a nameless, soothsaying witch from the distant past founded a militant order of frauds, all based on the idea that it was possible to will yourself away from this ghostly state. They called this lie " Transcendence," and many foolish Wraiths were caught up in their spell - paying exorbitant fees to be shown "the way," or taken off to some false paradise, far away from the lands of the living. The Book speaks of a deadly falsehood: one that promises all and gives nothing. This Great Lie enslaves the mind and soul, and turns one from the true path of Desire to the meandering labyrinth of foolish superstition, meaningless contemplation and a negation of one's true feelings. It makes a mockery of the things we hold most dear.  And truly, the doctrine of "Transcendence" could be no other than that same Great Lie that Desire, in Hir wisdom, spoke of.

 At last we had met the enemy that Desire had prophesied. And so we devoted a great deal of our  time to meeting this enemy head-on, and destroying the work he had set out to do. Desire willed it thus, and so it must be... Why the Animosity? The Solicitors distaste for the notion of Transcendence is total - sometimes all-consuming. They  hate the Heretics and, by extension, the Ferrymen with a passion... if you'll excuse the phrase. It  almost borders on mania. But you'd wonder why they wouldn't try and turn the situation around to their advantage? Surely, given the religious nature of their beliefs, they could understand - and pervert - the Heretics'  workings to their own ends? Why have they let their hate blind them so? The real point of contention, as a Solicitor who could compose herself enough to say as much could tell you, is in those ends. THE end, to be precise. The Solicitors believe that there is no end save that which you make of it. Paying fealty to the notion of leaving the Underworld by sheer will alone is counterproductive, and does nothing to improve the Wraith's immediate situation. Why spend ages pining away for a miracle? It's far  better to work in the here and now, and think of what could be, than to hang your dreams on something as alien as hope. Seen in that light, the Solicitors consider the Heretics to be sorry charlatans: cheats promising  things that they know they cannot deliver. Meanwhile, through Desire, Hir namesake can be made real.  And when you've got your finger on the truth, those who make claims to also have it - but  obviously don't, since they don't share your beliefs - are rather annoying...

Recent Mythology Good afternoon, my child. How goes your day?  Ah, yes... busy. I would expect no less, now that you have been introduced to The Book. And I suppose you must be just now embarking on a study of what the Cabal has been doing since that venerable tome left off? Of course. And you are full of questions, I presume? Yes... I thought as much. Ever full of  questions. This is a good thing, I think. But your master could, and perhaps should, be the one to answer  them for you, don't you agree? Oh... a second opinion is what you're after? Well, I suppose I could spare some time. I am, as you see, otherwise engaged in nothing at all... save for enjoying the peace and beauty of the Garden. I suppose that I should warn you, though. I cannot promise what I will have to tell you will be the readily-accepted version of how things happened, or why. My memory is not as it was, and perhaps the official history has been rewritten around me as I sit here in contemplation.

But I am old enough and well-regarded enough to be allowed my few, nonconformist ideas. You might be well off waiting a time before you mention my views, or where you heard them from... You will not be detered? Excellent. I thought I saw much of your Master in your eyes. Come then. Sit down here with this old man and his ill-made memories, and ask what you will. Questions are harmless, after all. It's what you do with the answers that gets you into trouble... The Infiltration of The Republic What can I tell you about the earliest days of the Republic... It is true, as The Book says, that we recognized in Charon and his Ferrymen the very quintessence of The Great Lie. But by the time we became fully aware of it, it was already too late to deal with it in a forthright manner. He'd already gone to the Labyrinth and found Lord Nhudri, traveled to the Far Shores and been given his precious Seven Signs, begun to build the great city of Stygia upon the Isle of Sorrows... all that pompous, ignoble rot. But we went to the Isle of Sorrows, at any rate. And we did so openly, I should add. We laid down our case to the Wraiths who were already milling about, there, waiting for their chance to be escorted to the Far Shore of their choice, and tried to explain to them that they were all being set upon a fool's errand. What a sorry lot they were! They were completely bewildered and amazed, having been sold a pack of lies in their lives, and now being quite uncertain of what strange fate their false Gods had set upon them. And yet they accepted another, equally ludicrous pack of lies from Charon and his Boatman's Society the moment they were taken from their Cauls and escorted to Stygia! We did our best to convince them of the truth of the matter, but they would not listen willingly. They had lost too much and were clinging to this one, small shred of hope with both hands... if  they still had them, considering the damned tithe. It was not too long before our activities gained the notice of the Ferrymen, and, through them, Charon himself. What happened next has guided a great deal of our Cabal's activities from here on out. Yes... a great deal, indeed... Oh... what happened? Well, I would that would be obvious, my dear. We were thrashed quite soundly and made to retreat. I'm quite sorry to say that we underestimated the man. We thought him a mere puppet of some antiquated witch... one for whom dying and being denied the paradise promised her was not enough to turn her hand or make her see reason. But this was a man who had done amazing things in h is time. He had poled through and explored the byways of the Sunless Sea, entered the Labyrinth and walked out - instead of fleeing - and had made many other, impressive achievements. He was not just some puppet with undeserved authority... at least, not by that time. So, after he grew enraged at having his death's mission questioned at length by the leader of our  emissaries, he commanded us to be silent. He said that we should go on our way, with our truth, and leave his charges to go find theirs on their own. I'm sure he said something like that...

something terribly relative and lacking in ultimate truth.  And when we refused, he nodded and said "so be it." And then he furrowed his brow behind his mask... or so I imagine him doing... and used Siklos to do something rather thunderous and spectacular to our leader. I can remember nothing of what he actually did - only the utter fear and a mazement that the effect engendered within us. And so, one by one, we turned and ran from his sight. We quit the Isle of  Sorrows, then... never to return...  At least, not openly. The next time we went back we did not announce our presence, nor seek a direct confrontation. We met in secret, and worked o ur craft amongst the populace, focusing on those ones who had decided not to try their luck with the Far Shores, but to instead remain on the Isle of Sorrows and seek their fates and fortunes there.  And so we flourished, right under the nose on Charon's mask.

The Society of Desire In time, another opportunity came for us to be more open about certain things. And we did, indeed, take advantage of it.  As you know, all Wraiths share as their deathright the powers of the dead. Arcanoi, as we call them. And it became eventual that those who shared a particular Arcanos would band together for  mutual aid, protection and some sense of community. The earliest of these groups were known as the Societies. Perhaps they were borrowing the notion from the Boatman's Society, though the Ferrymen were banded together for an entirely different reason than to protect esoteric knowledge or cheap conjurings. But there was also the Society of the Hammer, the Society of Purifiers, the Society of Dreams, the Society of Fear... several of them, in truth. Some of them yet remain to this day, as Guilds or other organizations, while others have disappeared into the mists of time and are no longer remembered at all... Do pardon me. I just remembering one of the lost ones. There is a reason why the Spectres can do things we have no clear understanding of, you know. But I think the less that is said about that, the better. So the Center of the Wheel, in Hir wisdom, bade us to resurface and become the Society of  Desire. And so we did. We took as our symbol a star with eight points: the same one you have doubtlessly seen echoed in many aspects of this Cathedral, as well as many other aspects of our  calling and vocation. Our chief purpose, at least so we advertised, was to engender and rekindle strong feelings in those who were finding their sense of purpose flagging over the ages. As you might expect, this was a service that many would pay a great deal of coin, for. And we were considered useful by Charon for this... if you can imagine that irony. The joke was, indeed, on him. As we did our service, we spread our philosophy and found many willing takers, right under that metal nose I alluded to, earlier. We also expanded our network of  Clients and Marks under that very same nose.

Did we have a hand in the creation of the so-called Renegades? No. I believe it was... oh, who was it that said "I love treason, but hate a traitor?"  Ah yes - well done. He spoke wisely, and that has always been a hallmark of our Cabal, my dear  pupil. We may not have created them, but we did find them useful, both then and later on... much later...  And did we have a hand in Charon's decision to call himself the Emperor of the dead, thus alienating those damnable Ferrymen and sending them away from the Isle of Sorrows? That is a very good question... one that I am, perhaps, not certain of. Oh, I should think so. Who would not want such an outcome? But the exact details of how we may have done it escape me. The Ferrymen were always difficult to directly manipulate, and Charon just as much. But those around them - and the events they could have set into place - were not so untractable...

The Great Rout Of course, you may have heard that we were broken down and exposed by the Magisterium Veritatis a few centuries after the First Great Maelstrom, and subsequent founding of the Empire. It is entirely true... at least, so far as they needed to know, anyway. Their "victory" was more of a feint on our part than anything else. That episode, which we like to call The Great Rout, started when the Magisterium became rightfully suspicious at the way things were going in Stygia. People would suddenly change their  minds on important matters, claiming a change of heart or mind or, sometimes, unable to say why at all. Programmed individuals would do the craziest things, like try to assassinate a Deathlord, and then have no idea why, either. For a few years, it was not an uncommon thing for many people to behave very, very strangely... Now, you should recall from your official history that the Magisterium Veritatis were Charon's elite watchmen, created to enforce the Proclamation of Reason. What you might not have known was that their senior and founding members were old, turncoat Ferrymen - the ones who had not turned their backs on Charon when he appointed himself Emperor. They were, like their loyal brethren, not only resistant to our methods, but very well-schooled in recognizing them. So it did not take them long at all to realize that the Society of Desire was behind this. By carefully following the trails from act to initiation, they were able to track us. And by spending quite some time just watching, there in the shadows, they were able to see just how much of the Empire we controlled. To say that this scared them was an understatement. I do not mean to brag, but it is safe to say that a perhaps half of everything that happened on the Isle of Sorrows - and, then, the Empire itself - had our hand in it somewhere. We even had one of the Senators... excuse me, I forget. They were Deathlords then. Yes. One of the Deathlords was a Client. That was how far we had gone. So you could understand that Charon was livid when the Magisterium Veritatis brought their